Your Right to Know

The leader of a bloc of the Ohio House’s most-conservative members said the group has thrown its
support behind Rep. Ron Amstutz to be the next speaker.

As lawmakers roll into the fall agenda, the race to succeed Speaker William G. Batchelder
continues to linger over the House — and based on a variety of private conversations, the sides
aren’t playing nice, which some worry could affect policy.

Batchelder, R-Medina, is term-limited at the end of 2014, but the race to succeed him has been
ongoing for months.

Amstutz, R-Wooster, and Rep. Cliff Rosenberger, R-Clarksville, have been the front-runners. Also
mentioned for the position has been Rep. Kristina Roegner, R-Hudson. Roegner is considered the
leader of about 10 House conservatives known to many around Capitol Square as the Manifesto Group —
both for its strong ideology and its preferred gathering spot, the Manifesto Tuscan Grato and
Scotch Bar across from the Statehouse.

Roegner’s group was strongly behind her for speaker, but most around the Statehouse doubted it
would be enough to win. In recent weeks, she said she and her team joined with Amstutz.

“I think bringing conservatives together with more moderates will help unite the caucus,”
Roegner said. “I wanted to be a leader in doing that.”

The questions now are whether the move gives Amstutz the momentum needed to end the speaker’s
race soon, and if it does, what does it mean for future policy if he is aligned with a group that
supports bills implementing right to work, eliminating Common Core education standards and largely
abolishing abortion rights.

A half-dozen Manifesto members also voted against the two-year state budget that Amstutz
carried.

Amstutz said Roegner’s support gets him closer to having a coalition that brings the caucus
together.

“Everybody is trying to get momentum, and everyone says they have it,” he said. “The truth is,
nobody is quite where they want to be so we have to figure out how to play nice in the
sandbox."

Rosenberger noted there is still 14 months left, and the winner won’t be known until a vote
happens.

“This is a constant, shifting ballgame,” he said. “Things keep going back and forth, and you
never know.”

Some GOP members have not picked a favorite, including a group that includes Reps. Lou Terhar of
Cincinnati and Jim Butler of Oakwood.

In fact, Amstutz’s decision to team with Roegner appears to have lost him some of his prior
backers. Rep. Dave Hall, R-Millersburg, said he is no longer behind Amstutz, in part because of
Amstutz’s decision to team with Roegner’s group. Hall said a number of members appear to be holding
off committing to either front-runner.

Some have suggested Roegner is teaming with Amstutz to become his No. 2, the speaker pro
tempore.

“I don’t want to talk about any agreements like that,” Roegner said, noting that the full caucus
would elect each member of the leadership team. “That’s something that needs to be earned. I want
to serve in whatever capacity I can.”

Amstutz said he would not talk about things that are “still under discussion.”